SAN ANTONIO -- At varying times, they went in to see LaMarcus Aldridge on Wednesday night, the fallen star tucked away out of sight, inside the small room with a wheelchair and training tables.

The Trail Blazers players and coaches trickled in, most of them catching sight of the All-Star for the first time since they last saw him: crying, wincing and being carried off the court here in San Antonio after a fall heard around the Western Conference.

“Where’s my boy?’’ Mo Williams asked as he cracked open the black door.

And that’s really the question today for the Blazers, isn’t it?

Where is Aldridge and his health?

Is he hurt as badly as it looked when he was upended while making a sweeping shot in the lane at the start of the third quarter? Can he play as soon as their next game Friday in New Orleans? Or is the real story behind those tears and creased face we saw with teammates under each arm, allowing him to take pressure on his right leg. That type of pain, that type of emotion is rare for Aldridge, which can lead the mind to wander when it comes to the severity of this injury.

Let it wander far enough, to that place where Aldridge is out for anything longer than a week, and that seemingly comfortable playoff appearance seems iffy, doesn’t it?

So the biggest moment of the Blazers season is upon us, and it has nothing to do with a ball, but rather a butt.

We don’t know how Aldridge is feeling because he never left that small room adjacent to the locker room, where his clothes remained, folded neatly, his red headphones propped idly next to his jeans.

The only thing to gather from the situation was the mood inside that room, and the reaction of the people who came in, then out. It was far from grim. In fact, there were more smiles than anything.

Chris Stackpole, the team’s director of health and performance, and Brant Helms, the team’s equipment manager, shared a good laugh inside the room. And when assistant Kim Hughes emerged, he had a crooked smile, hardly the look of a man burdened by worry.

Shortly after Hughes left, the team released a statement saying X-rays on Aldridge's back were negative.

Shortly after that, Wesley Matthews chuckled when recounting the scene after his pilgrimage to the trainer’s room to see Aldridge.

“He said he was all right,’’ Matthews said. “But he’s not a doctor; I’m not a doctor. So ...’’

So ... we wait.

The team made sure we were unable to see how Aldridge made it from the locker room to the team bus. The Blazers’ security staff requested that Oregonian photographer Bruce Ely be thrown out of the arena for having the temerity to stake out the walkway from the locker room to the team bus. The arena personnel did not eject Ely, but they escorted him back to the media room, which is at the other end of the building.

Was Aldridge pushed to the team bus in that wheelchair sitting in the trainer’s room? Did he use crutches? Walk with a limp? We don’t know.

All we are left with is the wait, and that lasting visual of Aldridge crashing to the floor on his backside, then instantly grabbing for his rear and squirming in pain. He never got up, not until his teammates were there to prop him up.

Stotts refused to get into the “what-if” game, but let’s face it, everyone today is asking that question: What if Aldridge is out? For a week. For two weeks. A month?

The Blazers (42-23) are 3.5 games ahead of Dallas for the eighth and final playoff spot with 17 games remaining.

If he is out for the next week, the Blazers could survive. They play at New Orleans on Friday, play host to Golden State on Sunday, then have Milwaukee and Washington at the Moda Center on Tuesday and Thursday. When the Blazers played five games without Aldridge last month, they went 4-1, beating up teams with losing records and losing a close game to the Spurs. It’s realistic to think this team could survive next week with a 3-1 or 2-2 record.

Beyond that?

It’s a five-game trip that includes stops in Charlotte, Miami and Chicago, followed by a home game against their nemesis, the Memphis Grizzlies.

Without Aldridge, a season changes, perhaps dramatically to the point where there is no postseason.

“We are praying for him,’’ Matthews said. “Hope that it’s nothing too serious and he comes back as fast as possible and healthy as possible.’’